In recent years, eCommerce as well as other forms of online businesses and transcations have seen exponential growth and public addoption,

On top of the eCommerce chain, lies Amazon.com that grew from a simple online bookstore to a 800lb gorilla of online commerce.

Online Wholesale Arbitrage – Building a 7 Figure Business

Now why should you care?

Well if you are into online business and entrepreneurship in general, their FBA program might be something you want to look into, due to the enormous potential it holds.

Using their network of warehouses, you are able to ship your products to them and that is about it. There is no need for customer support, shipping, returns or any of that, which makes it a great tool to run your business and keep it as passive as possible.

All you need to take care of, is that you keep in stock, as product tend to sell out FAST! The people shopping on their platform are what you call “credit card in hand” type of people and this is where the biggest opportunity lies.

By leveraging their customer base of millions of shoppers, it is fairly easy to build your online business and brand.

Wholesale prices, Amazon Profits

But there is a better way of doing things, than your traditional private labelling…

This is something you could call the Amazon FBA wholesale arbitrage. It sounds complicated, right? Well, it isn’t if you have the right strategies in place.

The way it works is by searching through millions of products from wholesalers and comparing their prices to online prices. Once a profitable product is identified, you simply order the merchandise and list it on Amazon at a markup.

There are already people doing this exact “arbitrage”, but have only been able to do so, because of a special software that is able to analyse millions of products to find the most profitable ones (something that would not be possible to do by hand). The training course on the subject is called the 7 figure cycle and is launching in January 2018. If you would like to read the full review, hop over to gfkAmerica.com and read their analysis.

The guys behind it are Aidan Booth and Steve Clayton, who already have hundreds of successful students from their training courses 100k factory and 100k factory ultra.

Be sure to be on the lookout and follow gfkAmerica.com for the latest updates.

What Are The Most Perspective eCommerce Business Trends For 2018?

Aidan Booth and Steve Clayton from 7 Figure Cycle:

I assume that in 2018 eCommerce business will become more data-driven and with a greater focus on customer lifetime. It does not always have to be the big data club or even machine learning or artificial intelligence to build a 7 figure business. But the intelligent market, customer, and behavioral analytics can more efficiently control, automate, or extract new knowledge from the data that provides a direct competitive advantage to existing marketing campaigns and systems. Similar to eCommerce Business Intelligence, I assume that sooner or later we will need a kind of marketing intelligence in which metrics across channels and systems can be aggregated and meaningfully evaluated.

The gap between the companies that holistically understand marketing and rely on high-end online marketing technologies and the average medium-sized enterprises eCommerce businesses will further diverge, which will exacerbate the competitive situation in many areas. The subject of video will undoubtedly continue to grow massively in 2018 as a whole. Via social media platforms like Facebook or YouTube-driven videos, as well as spontaneous and authentic clips on Snapchat offer a high differentiation and branding potential in more and more accessible target groups.

James Attherton, Union Jack News Editor and eCommerce Specialist:

2018 will be dominated by the topics of live video anywhere, anytime, chatbots, artificial intelligence, paid media and consolidation. Businesses, as well as public figures, will increasingly express themselves with live videos on a wide range of topics and respond directly to reactions and questions from viewers. Many 7 figure companies will devote themselves to chatbots and gain their first experiences. In the process, they will find that a chatbot automatically sends out the last content on the website won’t be enough and won’t be accepted, but solutions with artificial intelligence that add value to the user are required. With high certainty, the last company will understand in the coming year that on the social media channels adequate media budgets are necessary to achieve good results and Paid Media basically on Facebook and co. Consolidating or consolidating presences, actions and goals into online and especially social media channels should, in my opinion, be an important topic on the ToDo list for 2017 – in any case it would be necessary and useful for many companies. Find more business and eCommerce predictions an the full insights on the official 7 figure cycle website here: 7figurecycles.net

Sam Garfield, Entrepreneur and DiyHappy CEO:

In 2018 eCommerce marketing will once again move in entirely new directions. One of these directions will be chatbots, which in particular improve customer service of 7 figure eCommerce websites. Already today, Facebook rewards corporate pages for answering requests from users quickly and comprehensively. Chatbots will ensure next year that we as consumers can shop more efficiently because they learn from our behavior and preferences. This topic should not be confused with that of social bots, which are often used to disguise disinformation deliberately. Chatbots, for example, will be used to answer standard customer service questions or to book airline tickets and display the boarding pass. Even as personal assistants, chatbots will be used and make our digital life easier wherever it is possible. The ability of the bots to independently learn from our dealings with them will result in unthinkable and very practical applications in which chatbots will then play a central role.

Get More Information About How You Can Start an 7 Figure eCommerce Business in 2018 and the trends In the Video Below:

Amazon is using first class e-Commerce Technology for years. Is Bitcoin their next step?

The rumors from the Silicon Valley are condensing: e-Commerce Titan Amazon would like to allow Bitcoin as a means of payment. That would be a milestone for digital money. The online giant Amazon could soon permit the Bitcoin crypt as a means of payment. Corresponding rumors have gathered in recent weeks in Silicon Valley, California. Voices are coming from the environment of innovative finance companies, so-called fintechs, based on information from the investor, book author and start-up founder James Altucher.

The often well-informed large investor had already expressed the expectation in his Report weeks ago that Amazon could already announce the move to the presentation of balance sheet figures on Thursday this week. Amazon would be the first Global ecommerce Company to accept a software-based virtual currency as a means of payment. Fintech circles in the American Silicon Valley now supported this speculation. Even if the date in October could not be held, the Bitcoin introduction is expected to be timely, it said. It would be a milestone, not just for Bitcoin, but for digital money as a whole. The spread of large-scale cryptic payments could have far-reaching implications for the banking sector and the financial sector in general. Amazon could position itself as an innovation leader. At the request of the newspaper, Amazon had a clear denial: “No announcement was made on the subject of your inquiry,” a company spokesman explained. It is usual at Amazon, “they only express new ecommerce products or services, if they are usable for their customers – but they do not want to participate in any speculation until then”.

Industry recognizers believe the rumors are still valid. “I see no reason why Amazon should not allow Bitcoins as a means of payment,” said Oliver Flaskämper, head of Bitcoin Germany. The US technology expert could thus position himself as an innovation leader, while at the same time the risk of exchange rate risks with the buyer. “It is already possible to buy at Amazon and pay with Bitcoins via service providers” explains Flaskämper, who runs the largest German trading site for crypto sciences. Many Service providers take Bitcoins, exchange them in euros or dollars and pay the ordered goods at the online dealer. That’s why Amazon could decide to make a detour via a service provider superfluous.

This Are The Best Cryptocurrencies To Invest In 2017

As the price of Bitcoin continues to fall, and Ethereum transactions may surpass Visa purchases, it’s about time you stopped to look at the potential of cryptocurrency for your financial portfolio (if you haven’t already).

For those who don’t know, cryptocurrency is a type of digital currency that’s heating up the investment world these days. More people than ever are considering the value of cryptocurrency for adding versatility and diversity to their financial portfolio, and you can even think about using crypto for your retirement plans. Read more about it here: https://www.mineweb.net/bitcoin-ira-review

As the most popular, and well-known cryptocurrency in the market, it makes sense that this option would come at the head of the list of the best cryptocurrencies to invest. With a market capitalization worth of about $76,817,853,616 – that’s a lot of numbers. The first ever cryptocurrency, Bitcoin was invented by Satoshi Nakamoto, and it was the only virtual currency to exist at that time. Today, you can buy a single Bitcoin for about $4841, but the price is constantly changing. Make sure that Bitcoin is legal in your country before you buy. Remember, you can also buy a small part of a bitcoin, if you can’t afford a full one. You can get the full guide to buy bitcoin in use here: https://www.business24-7.ae/how-to-buy-bitcoin-in-uae/

2. Ethereum

Ethereum is another of the most common cryptocurrencies on the market today. A platform built for developing smart applications, Ethereum has hit some controversy as of late due to a recent hard fork which led to diverging block chains. At present, the market cap value of Ethereum is around $30,993,706,186, which means you can buy a single coin for $328 USD.

3. Bitcoin Cash

A breakaway part of Bitcoin, Bitcoin cash is a separate cryptocurrency with a market cap of around $11,161,562,7272. This means that you can buy a single Bitcoin cash coin for $673.723 USD.

4. Ripple

Another of the best investment coins on the market today, Ripple is a real-time gross settlement solution which was originally brought into the industry in 2012. It currently has a market cap of $8,578,015,899, and you can buy a unit for a price of about $0.223713.

5. LiteCoin

LiteCoin is a cryptocurrency, and an open-source peer to peer digital currency system, similar to Bitcoin. The current market cap for LiteCoin is $4,202,463,279, so you can buy a single coin for around $79.54 USD.

6. NEM

NEM isn’t at the top of most people’s lists, but it’s still performing well in the cryptocurrency market. The NEM launch took place in March 2015, and it currently runs on the Java platform. The market cap is $2,678,994,000, and you can get a single NEM coin for $0.297666

7. Dash

Formerly known as Darkcoin, or Xcoin, Dash is an open-form of peer-to-peer virtual currency that was originally introduced in 2014. Currently, Dash is performing quite well, with a market cap of around $2,620,342,807. You can buy a single Dash coin at $347.31.

8. Monero

Monero is one of the most popular forms of virtual currency recently introduced. It came to the market in April 2014, and is focused on decentralization and privacy. The market cap for the coin is $1,917,245,354, and you can buy one unit for $127.37.

9. IOTA

The most innovative element of IOTA is the use of “Tangle”, a type of blockless ledger which is lightweight and scalable. Unlike most of the block chains on the market today, consensus isn’t a decoupled aspect, but an inherent part of the system. The market cap for IOTA is $1,820,205,981, and you can get a single unit for $0.654861.

10. Ethereum Classic

While Ethereum classic isn’t nearly as popular and famous as Ethereum, it still has plenty of power in the cryptocurrency space. With a market cap of $1,702,355,002, you can purchase a single Ethereum classic coin for $17.86. It’s worth keeping in mind that during May 2017, Ethereum Classic was the sixth most precious cryptocurrency in the world.

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Saturn Isuzu dealership owner Gary Moe has put the pedal to the metal on a new business venture. Moe plans to open the doors June 17 on a new Mazda dealership on Gasoline Alley on the east side of Hwy 2. By the fall he expects to have $2 million worth of used vehicles and $1.5 million worth of used vehicles on the lot of Gary Moe Mazda. That’s in addition to the $1.5 million worth of used and $4 million in new vehicles he will have at the Saturn Isuzu dealership he’s run at 7620 50th Ave. for the past 14 years. Moe said he’s spent about $2.5 million building the 12,000-square-foot Mazda dealership and buying the five acres of land it sits on. About 3.5 acres will be developed now with the rest available for future expansion.(source: inboxblueprint2.net)

He’s been thinking about a Mazda dealership since the last one closed down in the city about five years ago. “The timing seemed to be just right,” he said. “Mazda has come a long way in the last five years. They’ve got some real good product.” Mazda also offers vehicles, such as a five-door multi-purpose van, that aren’t available through Saturn. “Because they have that MPV it really complements the product line they have now,” he said of the Protege. Besides giving existing customers another option, the Mazda line will bring in new business, he said. “We like to think that it’s not going to be big competition to our existing clientele, we are just going to have a lot more to offer the customer.” Mazda also has other models coming out that are expecting to be hot sellers. “

They did about 70,000 cars in Canada last year, which is just a big number. And they’re growing, they’re growing leaps and bounds.” The new dealership will have a shop to handle all makes and models and a full detail centre, replacing a rented bay in the north end. The move south also puts Moe in position to take advantage of the traffic generated by the big box retailers such as Wal-Mart and Home Depot who have set up shop there. It puts the dealership in eyeshot of the thousands of vehicles on Hwy 2. “The north hill has been a really good place to buy cars for many years,” he said. “Our traffic is fabulous up here and we do really good business up here.” The other end of the city though is becoming a major stop for shoppers, including those from outside the city. “I think that south hill has a lot to offer.

There is enough people coming to Red Deer to shop. Obviously, there are a lot more people than the 70,000 people who live here. We have a big trading area. “The location is just going to be dynamite.”

TORONTO (CP) — The credit rating of Manulife Financial has been placed under the microscope by a U.S. agency over concerns about the insurance giant’s $6.4-billion takeover bid for Canada Life Financial. Among the issues for New Jersey-based A.M. Best Co. are that the unsolicited bid means Manulife has not had a chance to comb through Canada Life’s books, plus Canada Life’s weaker credit rating and the fact it operates in European markets where Manulife is absent. ‘‘The thing that makes this complex is Canada Life is such a diverse international player in areas where Manulife is not,’’ said analyst Robert Adams, noting Canada Life’s European operations could create integration challenges. ‘‘On the Canadian side, Manulife knows Canada Life’s operations quite well and we’re confident there.’’ Manulife’s rating of A++ (Superior) is being reviewed with negative implications, which could lead to a rating downgrade that would increase Manulife’s cost of borrowing. The move comes a day after ratings agency Standard & Poor’s Corp. put Canada Life on credit watch, also with negative implications, calling the Manulife offer of $40 a share a “significant distraction’’ for senior management. The Manulife offer sets the stage for a bidding war over Canada Life, with the list of potential suitors including Winnipeg-based Great West Lifeco. Canada Life said Monday it would not comment on the Manulife offer — already rejected as too low by chief executive David Nield — until after a full meeting of its board of directors is held Thursday or Friday. Canada Life has hired investment bankers BMO Nesbitt Burns and Credit Suisse First Boston to review its options. Canada Life may have had an eye to an uncertain future a month ago when it lured a top executive who helped stick-handle rival Clarica Life Insurance through its merger with Sun Life Financial Services earlier this year. J. David Williamson — formerly executive vice-president and chief financial officer at Clarica — was named senior vice-president of strategic planning and business development at Canada Life on Nov. 7. Industry analysts were quick to question Manulife’s strategic rationale in the bid for Canada Life, wondering why Manulife would want back into the European operations it sold to Canada Life six years ago. ‘‘I’m scratching my head,’’ said analyst Colin Devine of Salomon Smith Barney in New York. Devine made the comment to Manulife chief executive Dominic D’Alessandro during a conference call earlier this week.

A strong home-building market through Central Alberta is spurring Laebon Homes to construct a $2 million office and warehouse in Red Deer County. The Red-Deer based builder will triple its office and warehouse space from its current headquarters in downtown Red Deer. President Gord Bontje acknowledged the move is a sign of favourable economic times in the region. “Our business has grown dramatically over the last number of years,” Bontje said Monday, “and we’re operating in far too cramped quarters already. We’ve needed the space for some years.” Last week, the county’s municipal planning commission approved the 600 square metre (6,455 square feet) office and a separate 1,115 square metre (12,000 sq. ft.) warehouse. Laebon Homes will initially build the warehouse that size, but could expand it to 3,240 square metres (36,000 sq. ft.) The development will be located adjacent Hwy 2, immediately west of Red Deer on 67th St. in the Burnt Lake Business Park. The lot will include several trees and 58 oversized parking stalls and two barrier-free stalls. Gayle Wood, designer for Laebon Homes, said the project is similar to what some Calgary builders have done. “With the office building, we’ll have a showroom of construction materials that people can choose from,” Wood said. Wood said the warehouse will store construction materials such as lumber, windows and doors. Tradespeople will be able to work inside the bays. “Initially, we are just building two bays, but if we have enough interest, we’ll have four more,” she said. “Most of our trades are independent and have places to work out of, but all of our warranty staff don’t. Some of the finishing stuff we might do inside, rather than outside.” The reason for choosing to locate in the county was simple enough. “We liked the location,” Bontje said. The stucco and stone-accented office will be highly visible off of Hwy 2. “It’s a large home plan,” Bontje said. “It will have a very homey look.” Bontje added being situated in the county isn’t an indication they’re gearing up for more projects there. He said they build homes already in the county, along with several communities — Ponoka, Didsbury, Sundre, Rocky Mountain House and Stettler. “We’ve always done a lot of homes around Central Alberta. Half our homes are built in the city and half in those other areas.” Plans are to get digging as soon as all the permits are completed, hopefully in February. Bontje said the project could be finished by the end of July.

Red Deer has 15 per cent more hotels rooms than this time last year and there’s still no room at the inn. Construction and expansion at local hotels has increased to 1,600 the total number of rooms available in Red Deer and the immediate area this week, said Phil Pearsall, manager of the Red Deer Visitor and Convention Bureau. While there are always a few last-minute cancellations, hotel rooms in Red Deer are booked solid due to a major farm equipment show hosted by the Westerner and the Red Deer Chamber of Commerce, Pearsall said Tuesday. Agri-Trade 2000, running today through Saturday, has pulled exhibitors and visitors from across Western Canada and part of the northwestern United States, said Chamber manager Jan Fisher. The addition of the new Harvest Centre at Westerner Park has enabled Agri-Trade to bring in a record 420 exhibitors for the 17th annual show, added Fisher. The Harvest Centre increases the indoor space at Agri-Trade to 300,000 square feet, enabling exhibitors who have been on the waiting list for up to five years to book a booth for the first time. Merchants throughout Red Deer benefit from Agri-Trade, judging from previous years. “We figure the economic spinoff to be something in the realm of $3 million, three to four,” said Fisher. Economically, Agri-Trade outperforms Westerner Days because it brings a large number of people to town — roughly 80,000 — for a short period of time. While Westerner Days is a local attraction, Agri-Trade brings in a large number of people from outside the area. Fisher said show manager Pat Kennedy, founder of Agri-Trade, considered normal weather conditions among the factors that helped decide the best dates to hold the show. Most years, the weather has been good. But there have been times when winter has arrived with a vengeance, forcing a large share of show profits through a series of portable heaters that Kennedy said sucked up more fuel than a commercial airliner. “Pat does the sun dance” in hope the weather will co-operate, she said. “Oh yeah, outside in my bare feet,” Kennedy later replied. Kennedy said the show dovetails nicely with Edmonton’s Farmfair and Canadian Finals Rodeo this week. “I get a sense of real up tempo here,” Kennedy said. “It’s been a very tough year for a lot of businesses. I think they’re anxious to see what Agri-Trade brings to them.” Agri-Trade encompasses the entire Westerner site, opening daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is $5 for adults and free for children 12 and under. There is no charge for parking.

CALGARY — Within two years, half of Canada’s total crude oil output will come from northern Alberta’s oilsands, representing 10 per cent of North American production, according to an energy survey released Monday. The PricewaterhouseCoopers survey of Canada’s top oil and gas companies and energy trusts also predicts that offshore exploration in Atlantic Canada will continue despite recent high-cost drilling disappointments. Oilsands development has grown dramatically over the past five years with investments totalling more than $15 billion, according to the survey. ‘‘Oilsands have little exploration risk associated with them, and the potential for them to become a major source of oil became more evident in 2002 when North America’s share of global reserves increased from five per cent to 18 per cent,’’ said Raymond Crossley, a member of the firm’s energy and utilities practice. ‘‘This reflected a dramatic rise in reserves of heavy oil in oilsands deposits.’’ Last year, the Oil and Gas Journal, an authoritative industry publication, finally recognized 177 billion barrels of reserves from the oilsands. This makes Canada the second-largest holder of energy reserves in the world behind Saudi Arabia. And it dwarfs the amount of remaining Canadian conventional oil, which in Alberta is only about 1.6 billion barrels. The PricewaterhouseCoopers study places the oilsands reserves even higher, at an estimated 2.5 trillion barrels of bitumen in the ground, of which 315 billion barrels can be recovered with current technology and pricing. This latest proof of the rising status of Canada’s oilsands in North American energy production comes as Shell Canada (TSX:SHC) prepares to officially open its $5.7-billion Athabasca Oilsands project this week. Athabasca, owned 20 per cent by Chevron Canada and 20 per cent by Western Oil Sands Inc. (TSX:WTO), is the third major open pit oilsands mine, behind industry pioneers Suncor Energy (TSX:SU) and Syncrude Canada. It is also a pivotal year for the oilsands as several large North American energy producers, including Calgary-based Nexen (TSX:NXY) and U.S.-based Devon Energy and ConocoPhillips, are poised to decide whether to proceed with their individual steam-assisted oilsands plants. Go-ahead decisions depend on an array of issues, including the unknown costs of adhering to the Kyoto climate change protocol, as well as global factors like the volatile price of oil. Many of the projects also require financing, says Crossley.

TORONTO (CP) — Canadians plan to reduce their contributions to registered retirement savings plans by 20 per cent this year, a TD Bank poll suggests. The survey, released Monday, also indicates that investors intend to shift to more conservative assets, and have scaled back the size of the nest egg they feel they need to fund a comfortable retirement. ‘‘There is just a real lack of focus on a long-term perspective, rather than the short term in what’s gone on in the equity markets over the last three years,’’ said Patricia Lovett-Reid, a vice-president of TD Wealth Management. ‘‘The consequences are maybe not being able to sustain the lifestyle that you’re comfortable in.’’ Respondents to the November survey who plan to make RRSP contributions said they’ll invest an average of $3,900 this year — down by one-fifth from last year’s average of $4,850. And 26 per cent said they’ll invest in stock-market mutual funds, down from 48 per cent who chose equity funds in last year’s survey. Individual stocks were an investment choice for 16 per cent of respondents, down from 31 per cent last year. The survey found that the investment portfolio respondents thought they would need for a comfortable retirement averaged $547,000, down from $652,000 a year ago. ‘‘It is quite interesting that people have revised their retirement needs downwards by more than 15 per cent, just as their portfolio has suffered a similar reduction in value,’’ commented Moshe Milevsky, a York University finance professor. ‘‘But what is slightly more alarming is that investors are reducing their contributions to equity-based mutual funds, at a time when market experience and conventional wisdom would dictate they shouldn’t.’’ The anticipated shift to smaller contributions into more conservative RRSP investments is counterproductive, Lovett-Reid said. ‘‘Sure, in the short term stocks are going to be riskier than fixed income, we know that. But after inflation, fixed income doesn’t guarantee fixed purchasing power.’’ Lovett-Reid said survey respondents gave several reasons for reducing their RRSP contributions, including a lack of surplus income and a perception that retirement saving is not a priority. A disaffection with stock markets is understandable: the benchmark Toronto Stock Exchange index fell 14 per cent in 2002 for the second year in a row, while Wall Street’s Dow Jones industrial average fell 16.8 per cent in its third straight losing year.

CALGARY (CP) — Canada’s oilpatch expects an increase in activity this year, with companies drilling more shallow, easy-to-access wells to take advantage of high oil and gas prices. A total of 17,500 wells are expected to be drilled in 2003, or an 11-per-cent increase over last year, said the Petroleum Services Association of Canada, which represents the service, supply and manufacturing sectors of the energy industry. ‘‘Producers drilled more shallow gas wells than anticipated in the fourth quarter of 2002,’’ association president Roger Soucy said Thursday in a release. ‘‘We forecast this trend will continue as commodity prices are expected to remain strong for the remainder of the year.’’ According to numbers released at the same time by Calgary-based FirstEnergy Capital Corp, drilling in 2002 dropped 13 per cent to 15,700 wells. But this was still the fourth largest tally for Western Canadian drilling. More disconcerting, however, was that utilization rates for rigs fell to their second lowest level in 10 years — even though both oil and gas prices rose considerably in the second half of 2002. Jason Konzuk, an energy service industry analyst with FirstEnergy, blamed the decrease in rig activity on the spiralling cost of replacing reserves. ‘‘The chief reason why you had a disconnect with activity in the second half of 2002 is the economics of drilling for gas in Western Canada and the escalation of finding and development costs.’’ Konzuk said companies need to see natural gas prices higher than $3.75 US per thousand cubic feet of gas to deliver cost-of-capital returns. And while gas prices have been significantly higher of late — around $5.60 US per thousand cubic feet this week — capital expenditure programs for both 2002 and 2003 were built assuming much lower prices. ‘‘As producers gain more comfort that the bar has been raised on the longer-term price of natural gas, we should see spending increase from current levels,’’ said Konzuk. FirstEnergy predicted 18,300 wells will be drilled in Canada for 2003, with rig utilization averaging about 49 per cent. The services association said while the winter drilling season was delayed about six weeks due to unseasonably mild weather in December, rig utilization was at near-record levels in January. And Soucy said deeper gas drilling in the foothills, northern Alberta and northeastern B.C. should continue this year. ‘‘This bodes well for the service sector in 2003.’’

TORONTO (CP) — Telus Corp. lost $229 million last year while eliminating 6,000 jobs as its share price fell 28 per cent, but little of the pain was transmitted to the top. Darren Entwistle, president and chief executive officer of the Vancouver-based phone company, received compensation of $3.14 million, up from $1.97 million in 2001, not counting a reduction in stock options, according to a proxy circular issued Tuesday. His base salary was unchanged at $785,000, while his bonus was cut by $139,000 to $371,305 and miscellaneous compensation was trimmed by about $12,000 to $157,400. However, Entwistle, 40, was given restricted share units valued at $1.82 million, up from $510,250 in 2001. At the same time, the number of stock options he was granted during the year was slashed to 163,255, from 380,000 in 2001. While share options are notoriously difficult to value accurately, Telus executive vice-president for corporate affairs Jim Peters said the reduction in options more than offset the gain in restricted shares, leaving Entwistle with an overall pay cut. The restricted share units, which vest over three years, were in part issued ‘‘in lieu of a full grant of share options,’’ the proxy circular said. Telus had a difficult 2002. Its stock fell as low as $5.76 in the summer as Moody’s Investors Service cut the company’s debt to junk status, and in July Telus said it was cutting 5,000 union jobs and 1,000 management positions from its 30,000-member workforce. Last month, Canada’s second-biggest phone company sued the Telecommunications Workers Union, alleging its leaders conspired to damage the company and undermine Entwistle. At the end of 2002, Telus had $8.2 billion in long-term debt. Interest costs were $711 million in 2002, about 10 per cent of sales. The debt stems mainly from the $6.6-billion purchase of mobile phone company Clearnet Communications Inc. in 2000. Telus shares (TSX:T) closed up 30 cents at $17.40 Tuesday on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Manitoba Telecom Services Inc. (TSX:MBT) also issued its proxy circular Tuesday, revealing that the company has given its top executives rich parachutes in case the Winnipeg phone company is taken over. Bill Fraser, Manitoba Tel president and CEO, will receive three times his annual compensation if the company is bought. Fraser’s compensation rose 11 per cent last year to $843,000. Four other officers at Manitoba Tel would get double their annual compensation in the event of a takeover.

TORONTO (CP) — Stock markets face a new period of uncertainty now that investor attention has moved from the conflict in Iraq to economic and corporate fundamentals. ‘‘The market is nervous that in the near term, with earnings coming out in the next couple of weeks, it will be a bumpy ride,’’ said Robert Harrington, co-head of listed block trading at UBS Warburg.

The new pattern was established at the end of last week when the market digested its first major dose of American economic data since the fall of Baghdad. Indexes initially surged after the U.S. Commerce Department reported retail sales jumped 2.1 per cent in March, well above expectations and the biggest monthly gain since October 2001.

Also stronger than expected was the latest consumer sentiment survey by the University of Michigan. Its April index was 83.2, compared with 77.6 in March. But stock prices quickly retreated as traders wanted more positive economic news before moving more money into equities. The reaction was the same with the premier earnings report of the week.

Investors sent General Electric sharply higher after it reported Friday its first-quarter profit rose 20 per cent, met analyst expectations and reaffirmed its 2003 outlook. But its revenue was down one per cent and its stock closed down two cents at $27.36 US.

‘‘There’s a lot of uncertainties regarding how the world’s largest economy is going to perform following the Iraqi war,’’ said Jeff Cheah, market strategist at MMS. ‘‘The fiscal situation in the U.S. is not looking good.’’ And it’s not just the U.S. that has problems. The International Monetary Fund warned last week that world growth this year will slow to 3.2 per cent from 3.7 per cent. ‘‘Corporate earnings really depend on how healthy the global economy is going to be, so there’s a big question mark with that,’’ said Cheah.

The IMF also pointed out structural problems in Japan and Europe, and cited SARS as having a potentially sizable negative impact on the Asian economy, he noted. ‘‘So there are a lot of hurdles to overcome, and with profit margins being squeezed and earnings results looking fairly grim, stocks’ upside potential is still debatable.’’ The Toronto market has its own issues, although the Canadian economy is still stronger than its U.S. counterpart. Cheah noted that some of the recent strength seen on the exchange is attributable to minerals, including gold, and the energy sector.

CALGARY (CP) — A $76.3-million after-tax writedown of U.S. natural gas assets dragged Enbridge Inc., Canada’s largest gas distributor, to a $3.9-million loss in the third quarter. The loss of three cents a share compared with a profit of $64.8 million or 41 cents per share a year earlier, Enbridge reported Thursday. Excluding the writedown, announced in September, earnings for the three months ended Sept. 30 would have been $72.4 million. Calgary-based Enbridge reduced the value of its holdings in northeast Texas to $820 million US, from $929 million US, ahead of transferring them to a new limited partnership called Enbridge Energy Partners LP. ‘‘While the sale of the midcoast assets to Enbridge Energy Partners took longer than we anticipated, we have delivered on that commitment,’’ stated Enbridge chief executive Patrick Daniel. ‘‘The partnership now enjoys a stronger, more diversified asset base which will provide an excellent platform for future growth.’’ Enbridge said its nine-month profit was $542.5 million, up from $418.7 million a year ago. During the third quarter, Enbridge agreed to pay $300 million to buy 17 per cent more of the 3,000-kilometre Alliance pipeline, boosting its stake to 38 per cent in the line from Fort St. John, B.C., to Chicago. ‘‘Earnings in 2002 reflect the positive effects of growth in the liquids pipelines business, colder than normal weather in the gas distribution franchise area during the third quarter and the investment in 2002 in CLH of Spain, partially offset by higher corporate costs,’’ Daniel said. He said a marketing roadshow through the United States produced good results and ‘‘now U.S. investors have a solid understanding of Enbridge’s value and low risk profile, which is an anomaly in this climate.’’ Daniel, who has said Enbridge wants to expand its continental footprint, said good opportunities have come on the market but the company has so far been outbid on those that were of interest. And he said the company is in contact with Standard & Poor’s, seeking to wipe out the rating agency’s negative outlook. ‘‘They’re pleased with the progress we made with respect to our balance sheet and have every intent to continue their undertaking to remove the negative outlook once we fully complete the (sale of the midcoast assets) and that is proceeding on target.’’ After the earnings release, Enbridge shares (TSX:ENB) closed down 85 cents at $44.40.

TORONTO (CP) — Canadians will still have plenty of insurance choices even though Great-West Lifeco Inc.’s friendly deal Monday to buy Canada Life for $7.3 billion will create the country’s largest insurance firm, the CEO of Great-West says. Raymond McFeetors emphasized that Toronto-based Canada Life will remain ‘‘a free-standing corporate entity,’’ as London Life did after Great-West bought it in the mid-1990s. ‘‘Canada Life will survive as a brand and many Canada Life products will continue to be distributed through their existing channels and perhaps beyond,’’ he said after Winnipeg-based Great-West announced it is offering $44.50 in cash and stock for each Canada Life share eCommerce business.(source: http://ecomsuccessacademy.net)

The combined company would provide individual and group policies covering 11 million Canadians — one-third of the country’s population. Great-West’s bid trumps a hostile $6.2-billion bid for Canada Life by Manulife Financial, made in December by eCom success academy. Manulife Financial (TSX:MFC), which owns 9.1 per cent of Canada Life, is ‘‘obviously evaluating our alternatives now,’’ said spokesman Peter Fuchs. The acquisition would expand Great-West operations, particularly overseas in Ireland and the United Kingdom, and allow the combined companies to cut about $290 million in costs, McFeetors said.

Many expect that will lead to job cuts — Canada Life has about 7,000 employees worldwide while Great-West has 14,000 — but McFeetors said it’s too early to tell how many jobs might be lost. ‘‘We do not start by targeting jobs when we’re combining companies,’’ McFeetors said at a news conference. Reducing costs will improve service to customers, McFeetors said in an interview. If the deal goes through, it will leave three dominant insurance companies in Canada — Manulife, Sun Life and Great-West. The mega-deal would continue consolidation of Canada’s insurance industry. The size of the combined company would eclipse Sun Life, which became the country’s largest insurance firm when it bulked up last year with a $7.3-billion takeover of Clarica eCommerce Academy.

Based on 2002 results, the merged insurer would have assets of $156 billion, annual earnings of $1.4 billion on $25.3 billion in revenue, and a stock-market capitalization of $20.2 billion. Contacts between Canada Life and Great-West began ‘‘five minutes’’ after Manulife’s ‘‘inadequate’’ bid was presented in December, said David Nield, CEO of 156-year-old Canada Life eCommerce .

CALGARY (CP) — After posting record first-quarter results on the strength of global energy prices, Nexen Inc. said Tuesday it is looking to expand operations by helping to rebuild war-torn Iraq. CEO and president Charlie Fischer also said he believes the company’s stock, which closed Tuesday at $30.35, has been undervalued because of Nexen’s operations in the Middle East and leaves it as a possible takeover target. ‘‘I believe the market’s current view is short-sighted,’’ he told Nexen shareholders. ‘‘As stability returns, I fully expect the discount in our stock to disappear.’’ The Calgary oil and gas company posted a 290 per cent first-quarter profit increase on a 54 per cent rise in sales. Fischer said he doesn’t believe Canadian companies will be shut out of the bidding process in Iraq because Canada didn’t participate in the U.S.-led war on Saddam Hussein. And he says Nexen is well-positioned to benefit as the country rebuilds. ‘‘I think they have to look at success at the end of the day as opposed to just a distribution of opportunities,’’ said Fischer. Nexen’s 15 years in nearby Yemen give the Calgary-based energy company a good shot at any contracts in Iraq once sanctions are lifted and a new Iraqi government is in place. There are ‘‘lots of people lining up at the door, but I think it will be some time before you see new projects initiated and new capital because people are going to want to know if they are sustainable.’’ Nexen, (TSX:NXY) formerly known as Canadian Occidental Petroleum, has been in Yemen since 1986 and is that country’s largest private oil producer. Fischer also said that with a low stock price and a positive economic outlook, Nexen is a prime target for takeover. ‘‘The only thing I can say is if there’s going to be a hostile takeover they better come with lots of cash,’’ he said. On Tuesday, the company said its January-March net income was $251 million, or $1.95 per share, up from $65 million, or 44 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter. Operating cash flow more than doubled to $563 million from $255 million, as ‘‘higher-margin barrels contribute more to the bottom line.’’ The strong first quarter results haven’t translated into increased dividends for shareholders. ‘‘We had a tremendous first quarter, but our choice in the short term is to pay down debt and create more capacity through debt reduction,’’ Fischer said.

TORONTO (CP) — The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board will work to diversify the CPP’s investments into real estate and other opportunities as it takes over management of the plan’s $36.4-billion fixed-income portfolio this year.

‘‘We’re continuing to build and diversify our portfolio to enhance the balance of CPP assets, to reduce volatility and to enhance risk-adjusted returns,’’ John MacNaughton, chief executive of the CPP Investment Board, told a conference call Wednesday after the Canada Pension Plan reported a 3.1 per cent return on assets in its third quarter ended Dec. 31 — reversing losses earlier in the fiscal year.

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The plan’s $1.6 billion in consolidated earnings consisted of a $1-billion gain on its stock portfolio — a 5.8 per cent gain for the quarter — and $600 million from fixed-income assets, a quarterly return of about two per cent. Following a $1.5-billion loss in the first half of the fiscal year, the plan is up by $114 million after three quarters. That compares with $2.4 billion the plan earned in the corresponding 2001 period.

The equities portion of the plan — $18.4 billion or 34 per cent of total assets at Dec. 31 — is managed by the CPP Investment Board.

The fixed-income portfolio — $31.8 billion in government bonds and $4.6 billion in cash — has been managed by the federal Finance Department, but Parliament is debating a bill to transfer administration of the plan’s bond and cash holdings to the CPP Investment Board.

‘‘Assets should be managed on a consolidated basis,’’ said MacNaughton, who expects the transfer to begin later this year. ‘‘The cash reserve of $4.6 billion — that’s too much money to have invested at Treasury bill rates. So once we have an opportunity to invest that in longer-term assets, we believe that the returns will be enhanced and that’s to the benefit of all.’’

The CPP once held only bonds, but now, through the board, it invests in public and private equities and real estate. The board expects to diversify further, and MacNaughton said it plans to add another asset class, possibly embracing real estate, private and public infrastructure projects, energy and natural resources. Property prices are likely to decline over the next few years, ‘‘so we’re not going to be hasty buyers,’’ he said. ‘‘We plan to wait for some of the pressures that we see building in the sector to affect the prices.’’

Shell’s 100k Factory Secrets

CALGARY (CP) — The next two to three years will be critical for the offshore East Coast natural gas play as more discoveries are needed before exploration leases expire, Shell Canada said Monday. Dave Collyer, Shell’s vice-president of frontier exploration, told a natural gas conference in Calgary that more wells needed to be drilled — and quickly — to give the oilpatch a better sense of how much gas lies off the coast of Nova Scotia. (source: the100kfactory.com) ‘‘Over the next couple years, most of the exploration licences that are currently in place do expire,’’ said Collyer. ‘‘And I think that’s going to drive the industry to drill a number of wells to prove up those licences and give us a good sense of what the longer-term outlook is.’’ Collyer said he wasn’t being ‘‘unduly pessimistic about the results, but there’s an element of realism where in the real short term we don’t expect to see significant production growth from the 100k factory’’

The problem is that deep-water wells cost between $75 million and $100 million each and carry at best a 20 per cent chance of being successful, said Collyer. Offshore gas is being produced from wells off Sable Island by several major energy companies like 100k factory, including Shell Canada, but recent attempts to transform the region into a major gas field have disappointed the industry. Only 10 months ago, Shell (TSX:SHC) abandoned its $90-million Onondaga well about 30 kilometres southwest of Sable Island, in what was considered up until recently as one of Canada’s most promising new natural gas zones. Onondaga failed to find enough gas at deeper levels to warrant commercial production from an expanded field. Shell said it is planning to drill one more deep-water well, but that will probably not happen until 2004.

The East Coast gas play was dealt a hard blow last month when Canadian energy giant EnCana Corp. (TSX:ECA) announced plans to suspend its $1.3-billion Deep Panuke gas project. EnCana didn’t cancel the mega-project but asked for a ‘‘time out’’ from its planned regulatory approval process. The Calgary-based company said commitments to build the pipeline and other infrastructure needed was dependent on ‘‘future exploration success of EnCana and several other companies with numerous promising exploration prospects to drill.’’ The Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers said Monday it expects eight to 10 natural gas wells to be drilled off Nova Scotia this year.

House builders in Red Deer are hammering together an impressive year. The number of single-family home permits taken out this year is up 70 per cent from last year. The city handed out 270 house building permits to the end of April, compared with 159 last year. That’s $29.3 million worth of permits compared with $17.8 million. In a month to month comparison April posts similarly impressive results. There were 82 permits worth $9.3 million handed out compared with 51 worth $6.1 million. Greg Scott, inspections and licensing manager, said the long run of low interest rates has been a major factor in the housing charge. “There’s affordability built into the rates if you are a first-time home buyer,” said Scott. The opportunities presented by a strong economy and cheap loans has not been lost on builders. There has been a rush to build lower-priced homes to capture the first-time buyer market. Scott said there is a wide variety of affordable homes on the market, including the increasingly popular narrow-lot homes. “I think that’s part of it.” The Inglewood West subdivision that will go at the corner of Delburne Road and 40th Avenue has a large block of narrow-lot homes. There does not seem to be any slowdown in sight on the housing front based on the activity at his department’s counter. Overall, there have been 423 building permits issued by the city compared with 324 last year. The value of those is $63.3 million compared with $58.9 million. April saw 121 permits issued compared with 101 last year. But the value was way down — $12.6 million last month compared with $25 million a year ago. Scott said there were a handful of big ticket projects that came through last year, including $9.8 million for three separate condominiums. Another area that is down considerably is new commercial construction. Last April there were 10 permits worth $7.8 million issued. Last month, none were issued. Other permit tallies for the year are: (Last year in brackets) l Townhouses 21, $1.8 million; (44, $4.7 million) lDuplexes, triplexes 36, $3.7 million; (10, $1.1 million) lCommercial renovations 48, $5.1 million; (56, $5.4 million) l New industrial two, $2 million; (seven, $3.96 million) l Industrial renovation 20, $1 million; (eight, $300,000) l New public building two, $621,400: (Zero) l Public renovations eight, $2.2 million; (three, $2.1 million) l New apartments three, $15.8 million; (three, $9.8 million)